The Live Lovely Manifesto

Simple Living With Live Lovely 

Welcome,

My name is Courtney and “live lovely” is my manifesto. It is a motto to remind myself to appreciate the every day, no matter how small or simple it may be. This blog is my creative space to share my simple living journey. I rent a small cottage in the New England countryside, which I have lovingly nicknamed Hill Top Cottage because it is placed at the very top of a large hill, and of course because of my love for the author and illustrator Beatrix Potter, whose farm was known as Hill Top Farm.

I started this blog in 2014 to share my professional photography and travels. Several years ago I moved my professional work to its own website. My small business, Live Lovely Photography can be found at www.livelovelyphotography.com. My blog, which began with articles about photography and travel (especially New England travel) has since transformed into a blog that compiles all of my interests. At Live Lovely, you can find my writing and photographs on topics from simple living and gardening, home decor, style, recipes, crafts, cottagecore, book reviews, thrifting, and of course plenty of travel from New England to my adventures across and outside of the the United States.

I believe that we can cultivate a life of simplicity and joy, no matter where we are or where we came from. My childhood and early adulthood was extremely difficult, but I have worked so hard to cope with the past to build a life that uplifts myself and others. It is my hope that you too can create a life of peace and gratitude. I hope that my simple articles bring you joy and inspiration.

Thank you for visiting.

 

A Little Bit About Courtney 

I live in New England. I could happily spend all my weekends traveling through the New England states. Connecticut is a small state, but I truly love living here. I heard so many people claim that Connecticut was boring or there was not much to do, so I started my blog with the hope of sharing local adventures that people could enjoy right here in our little New England state.

Several years ago I found a gorgeous book about France with amazing photos and personal stories by the photographer. I loved it, however, while looking at the photos I realized that there are also many beautiful places right here at my home base in Connecticut. There is so much beauty to discover right where you are, which is why I decided to turn a lot of my exploration inward and to places nearby in my beloved New England. People travel from all over the world to visit New England, especially in the summer and autumn. Instead of daydreaming about far off places that I cannot afford to fly to just now, I made a wish list of all the local places that I love or want to visit. I am living for today and appreciating the life that I have right now. I call these posts my “Connecticut Charm” and “New England Living” series. It satisfies my wanderlust and the photojournalist inside me. Truly, it makes my soul happy!

Living simply is important to me. I am no longer a minimalist, but simple living is at my core. I currently rent a small cottage in the countryside with my husband and our two cats, Madeleine and Monet. I am currently working on making this rental house feel more like a home with thrifted furniture and decorations, crafts, and simple home projects that are renter friendly and kind to my budget. Every once in a while I like to share some of our updates to the cottage.

Although I try my best to be minimalist with my home, I have a home library that is currently overflowing with books I love. I stopped away from minimalism in 2019 and focused on simple living instead.

I am an avid reader and enjoy discussing books. What do I love to read? Travel memoirs, poetry, books about photography, business books, positive psychology, and a lot of contemporary romance novels. (I blame this one of my passion for wedding photography. It may have inspired my reading choices somewhat.) I have also started reading more classics and some mysteries. Lately I have been reading many of the children’s classics that I missed out on as a kid and historical fiction.

I collect and listen to old vinyl records. I do love modern music (I adore rock and roll), but I tend to lean towards the oldies like the 1950s and 1960s bands. And of course, I am a Taylor Swift fan.

I’m in love with vintage fashion, music, and movies. My styling is usually influenced by my love for old films and vintage photography. The books I read also influence my clothing choices. But when winter comes, my uniform is usually a thick pair of pants and an oversized knit sweater.

I married the man I fell in love with sixteen years ago when I was eighteen years old! Our wedding was on June 16th 2018. We honeymooned in France, Italy and Greece.

In the summer I cannot keep my shoes on. I have to be barefoot outside in the grass or in a lake. This coming summer I would like to learn how to grow my own flowers. I’m obsessed with sunflowers. If I were a flower I would be a sunflower.

There are numerous adventures and experiences on my life goal list. One of them was flying a plane, which I accomplished on my 27th birthday.

I love being outdoors in nature, typically going for a long walk or hike every single day. In the winter, I am sad that I cannot hike after work, but even kn cold days I do my best to get outdoors as much as possible. Kayaking is one of my favorite hobbies. And my garden is slowing improving each year.

Now that we are renting a cottage with a yard, I have expanded my raised garden beds from two to four 4×4′ beds, planted rose bushes, and last summer put together my first starter greenhouse. Next spring, I plan on expanding a little bit more by tilling a patch in the lower yard by the barn for squash varieties like honey nut, acorn and butternut squash. I also plan on planting some pumpkin varieties for cooking and decorating. If all goes well, I may even consider adding corn, potatoes and garlic.

Thank you for joining my journey.

 

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